President’s Message

Dear Students and Families,

We hope you enjoyed the recent snowfall! We’ve been back to school now for over a month, and we more than halfway through the school year already. Keep an eye out for registration details for 2014/2015 school year as well as the upcoming Maifest.

At this point, we have 105 students enrolled at EGLS, the most it has been in over 5 years. Our priority and goal is to continue offering quality German language classes, keeping tuition affordable and classroom size at an acceptable level to support learning and interaction. Thank you to our teachers, parent volunteers, Angrid (Principal) and Anita (Vice principal) for continuing to make this the Best Choice in German Language School on the eastside. Thank you also to the Board for successfully guiding the school in financial and business decisions.

After serving the board for 4 years as President and Vice President, I have decided to step down from my position as President of the Board effective April 5, 2014, at the General Meeting. My consulting practice is now in its third year and requiring much more of my time and energy. I have thoroughly enjoyed serving the Board and EGLS and know that EGLS had a solid and long future ahead of it.

I am reaching out to you for referrals and nominations for the position of President of the Board. It is a great opportunity for someone with a passion for German language, community and culture who wants to make a difference in the German community and on the Eastside. The team of Board members is very strong – representing skills in business, high tech and legal. If I say so myself – the Board Members are a lot of fun and have become good friends over the years. Thank you Board Members – I will miss you – but will stay connected.

I look forward to seeing you at the General Meeting on April 5th. Please come to hear about our year’s successes, challenges, financial health and goals. Please let me know if you are interested in joining the Board or have any questions, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 425-753-4169 (personal cell).

Sincerely,

Christina Easton

President of the Board

EGLS

Principal's Message

We have already passed the half-year mark and are looking forward to celebrating Fasching on March 1st.

With the New Year we had some changes and exciting news: our playgroup has a new teacher – Silvia Phillips. Silvia has a lot of teaching experience in early childhood education and already taught the playgroup class at EGLS in 2008.

On January 18, 2014 our four DSDII students took their final oral test for their DSDII exam. All students showed impressive presentations and passed the oral section. We are looking forward to seeing their overall results in spring.

January 18 was not only the last day of the first EGLS semester, it was also “EGLS teacher’s night out” and our EGLS teachers met at Fins Bistro in Issaquah to enjoy a delicious dinner together as part of the teacher gift certificates from the EGLS Board for Christmas.

EGLS is also getting ready to celebrate the 5th season. We will celebrate Fasching on March 1st. Get out your favorite costume. School will start at 9:30 AM with regular class, and the Fasching celebrations will begin at 10:30 with dancing and games. Bring family and friends and party with us.

See you all soon,

Angrid Henning

Principal

Fasching

March 1st

Join us March 1st for EGLS’s Fasching. Normal school class begins at 9:30 AM and the Fasching party begins at 10:30. Wear your favorite costume!!

Cheers to our parents! Join us at a fun pizza lunch after school! Details to follow

Maifest: 5/1/14

Come celebrate the end of another fun filled year at Pine Lake Park. Details coming soon!

Fasching

Fasching is Germany’s carnival season. It starts on the 11th of November at exactly 11 minutes after 11:00AM and ends at the stroke of midnight at on Shroud Tuesday (often referred to as Fat Tuesday, the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday).

Fasching is a time of festivity and merry making – a time to break the rules, poke fun at those who make them and then to make your own rules.

Soon after Fasching season opens a mock government of eleven guilds (Zünfte) are elected, along with a Carnival prince and princess who plan the carnival activities.

“Weiberfastnacht” is mainly held in the Rhineland. The day begins with women storming into and symbolically taking over city hall. Then women throughout the day will snip off men’s ties and kiss any man that passes their way.

“Rosenmontag” - the largest and most popular carnival parades take place on the Monday before Ash Wednesday. The biggest German Carnival parades are held in Cologne & Dusseldorf.

“Fastnachtsdienstag”: Besides parades held on this day, you have the burning or burial of the Nubbel. A Nubbel is a life size doll made of straw that embodies all of the sins committed during Carnival season. It is buried or burned with great ceremony on Tuesday evening before everyone partys one more time until Ash Wednesday arrives

Faschingskrapfen

6 egg yolks

100 g of melted butter

35 g yeast (or 1 bad of dried yeast)

50 g sugar

500 ml warm milk

500 g flour

1 pinch salt

Apricot jam mixed with a dash of rum (optional)

Oil

Iced Sugar

Mix the yolks, butter, yeast, sugar and milk with the flour and let the dough sit in a warm place for 30 minutes. Mix it again and let sit until the volume has doubled.

Make about 20 little balls and flatten slightly. Cover with a kitchen towel and let them sit for another 30 min. in a warm place.

Heat the oil in a pot and bake the krapfen on both sides. Take them out and let the excess oil run off.

Mix the apricot jam with rum and use a filling tool with a beak to inject the jam into the baked donuts.

Cover generously with icing sugar

News & Events

Parents Lunch

Instead of our traditional Parent’s breakfast, please join EGLS for a lunch to celebrate our Parents! Pizza and beverages will be served after the normal Saturday class at 1:30 PM. Look forward to seeing everyone!!!

New Teachers!

Please welcome Silvia Phillips as the new playgroup teacher! She brings wonderful early childhood education experience to EGLS.

Please also join us in welcoming Christine Huelsmann-Dykstra as the new preschool teacher taking over for Klaudia Linowska who is on maternity leave. She brings a wealth of teaching experience to the preschool as well as her darling 18 month old little boy named Jacob

It’s a boy!!!

Klaudia Linowska, our preschool and adult Saturday teacher welcomed a darling baby boy just in time for Valentine’s Day! Henry was born February 4th at Overlake Hospital. He weighed in at 7 pounds 6 ounces, 56 cm and as you can see super handsome! Congratulations to Klaudia and her husband!

Relocation Update

Dear EGLS Students and Parents,

I wanted to share with you that our current contract with the East Shore Unitarian Church is up for renewal at the end of the school year.We have already been fore-warned, that the current rates we have been enjoying the last two years were significantly below market, and that the new renewal rates will be significantly higher.

As a Board we are committed to offering German Language Programs at an affordable rate to our families and students.We are looking at this situation very seriously as we do not want to raise tuition dramatically and want to remain an affordable German language program for our families and future students.

This letter is a call for your support and help – to all students, families and parents to let us know of any churches, schools or other appropriate facilities in the I-90/405 corridor that would have the following to meet our needs.